Steve Jobs' health worries Apple investors

16 January 2009

Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs may have to undergo surgery to remove his pancreas, according to reports quoting doctors.

Jobs had announced a day earlier that he would be on medical leave for the next five months after finding out that his problems are "more complex" than what he thought of them last week.

The idea of Apple without Jobs at the helm is clearly having an impact on the scrip's price, which dropped around 2.3 per cent in Nasdaq trading.

Earlier, Jobs had undergone surgery similar to a Whipple operation involving the removal of parts of his pancreas, bile duct and small intestine, having been diagnosed with a rare type of pancreatic cancer in 2004.

Reports quoted various medical professionals as saying that one of the side effects of this procedure is that the pancreas needed to be removed to prevent a possible pancreatic leak. The patient thereafter has to live with insulin to regulate blood sugar, just as diabetics do. There is also a significant risk of diabetes.

Jobs has handed over the everyday operations of Apple to COO Tim Cook while saying that he will remain involved in "major strategic decisions." The 53-year old said he would retain the helm as CEO while taking a medical leave of absence till the end of June.